People Moves in the Channel Round Up

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People Moves(Pictured Above): Top L to R: Laura Kabayeva, Kevin Stableford, Lex GeorgeBottom L to R: Lesley-Anne Garland, Niall Mulcahy, Jim Edwards, Stephen Davies
Laura Kabayevahas been promoted to Senior Demand Planner at MMD Monitors & Displays.
Kevin Stablefordhas joined Claranet in the role of Supplier Management and Finance Lead.
Lex Georgeis now a Major Account Manager for Example IT Limited.
Lesley-Anne Garlandhas joined Ingram Micro Lifecycle as UK Head of Business Development.
Niall Mulcahyhas joined Northwood Technology Ltd as Business Development Manager for Munster.
Jim Edwardshas been promoted to Lead Global Category Marketing Manager at Kensington.
Stephen Davieshas been appointed Head of Information Technology at Northamber.
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(Pictured Below): Top L to R: Henrik Ertman Baunsgaard, Margaret Totten, Richard LhermitteBottom L to R: Emma Bryson, Jonathan Gray, Aryan Sethi, Antonio Rubert
Henrik Ertman Baunsgaardhas stepped into the role of GM I Europe Consumer Channel Leader at Microsoft.
Margaret Totten (FCIM)has been appointed Vice Chair of Scotland Women in Technology (SWiT).
Richard Lhermittehas joined Arrow Electronics in the position of Product Manager, Arrowsphere Cloud & AI.
Emma Brysonhas started a new position as Marketing Director at Sage.
Jonathan Grayhas joined First Technology UK as a Microsoft Sales Specialist.
Aryan Sethihas stepped into the role of Product Manager at Westcoast.
Antonio Ruberthas started a new position as EMEA HPE Senior Business Development Manager – HC, GreenLake, AI and Services at Ingram Micro.
 

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A Brief Look at Canon Q2 2026 Performance

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InsightsCanon has confirmed that they are now the “No.1 provider” of both A3 Laser MFP and Production Print solutions across the UK & Ireland for Q2 2026, according to IDC Hardcopy Peripherals Tracker Q2 2026 (August), covering markets in the UK and Ireland
Unsurprisingly, the market share claims are aligned to Canon’s Q2 2026 results. For full results, find them here, and in brief:

 Canon delivered record Q2 net sales of ¥1.18 trillion / $7.4bn, up 3.6% year-on-year, driven by strong Imaging performance and growing demand for semiconductor lithography equipment
Operating profit increased 35.2% to ¥159.2bn / $1.0bn, benefiting from favourable exchange rates and tariff refunds despite ongoing cost inflation.
Printing sales grew 3.1%, with improving demand for commercial printing systems and digital production equipment. IT services, consumables and solutions continues to grow.
Imaging sales were up 17.7%. Growth was driven by demand for compact cameras, higher sales of full-frame mirrorless models and network cameras, where revenue increased by more than 20%.
Demand for memory and AI-related semiconductor equipment is strong, with Canon selling 48 lithography systems during the quarter while continuing development of nanoimprint lithography technology.

Recent IDC Hardcopy Peripherals Market Insights
According to IDC, worldwide hardcopy peripherals shipments declined by 7.0% year over year to 17.2 million shipments in the second quarter of 2026, according to the latest release of IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Hardcopy Peripherals Tracker. Value of shipments in the second quarter was $8.1 billion, a 5.8% decline from the prior year.
The Middle East War weighed on oil prices, placing stress on supply chains and causing end users to delay purchasing decisions, suppressing shipments in the second quarter.
“Q2 2026 was marked by geopolitical and economic volatility that left both consumer and commercial buyers cautious, dampening appetite for investment in new products,” said Maggie Tan, Vice President at IDC. “This headwind is likely to persist until the macro picture stabilizes.”
Worldwide hardcopy peripherals highlights in Q2 2026
Ink tank shipments grew year over year, continuing to take share from ink cartridge models globally, as vendors continue to add ink tank models to their portfolio in this growing market segment.
Laser shipments contracted again in Q2 2026, though their decline was less than inkjet. Weakness remained more pronounced in A3 configurations, but A4 declines narrowed the gap. Both color and monochrome laser were down from the prior year, with monochrome posting a steeper decline than color in the second quarter. Within the monochrome category, however, 45-90ppm models bucked the trend, showing slight year-over-year gains.
Full IDC commentary for Q2 can be found here.The post A Brief Look at Canon Q2 2026 Performance first appeared on Print in the Channel.

 

Interview with CTS Wholesale Director of Sales Guy Gash

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InsightsCTS Wholesale has ambitious plans for the coming years, and its growing managed print services division will play a crucial role in that. Director of sales – MPS, Guy Gash, explains what makes the company stand out in a competitive market.
These are busy times for Guy Gash. Since joining CTS Wholesale three years ago, he has played a key role in the development of its managed print services (MPS) division as lead for sales and marketing. Now, following his promotion to director of sales – MPS, he has ambitions to grow it further and faster.
“I have spent many years working within the copier, print and MPS sector as initially as a service engineer and progressing into sales and have built up a strong understanding of the market, the products, the reseller community and, most importantly, what customers actually need from a distribution and MPS partner,” he says.
“Since joining CTS, I’ve been given the opportunity to use that experience to develop the MPS division. We have built a fantastic team of experienced people around the division, with technical, sales and industry knowledge that gives us a very strong platform from which to grow.
“Moving into the director of sales – MPS position reflects the importance the business now places on this division and the opportunity we see ahead.”
The development of the MPS division is indicative of growth and change across CTS. “We are investing in our UK headquarters, increasing our operational capacity and developing our presence in Ireland,” Guy says. “When you combine that infrastructure with our MPS expertise and our exclusive distribution relationship with Pantum across the UK and Ireland, it feels like we have all the ingredients to build something very significant.
“For me, that is incredibly exciting.”
The right kind of growth
Guy has ambitious growth plans for the MPS division. “But it must be the right kind of growth,” he says.
“Our ambition is to develop CTS MPS into a genuine growth partner for dealers and resellers. That means giving our partners the products, technical expertise, commercial structure, training and support that allow them to win and retain more business.
“We want to make MPS accessible. There are dealers with established managed print businesses that we can help grow further, but equally there are traditional office products dealers that may look at MPS and think it is too complicated or too technical to enter. We want to remove those barriers. CTS can provide the infrastructure and expertise behind the scenes while allowing reseller partners to own and develop the customer relationship.”
Guy notes that the market is changing quickly. He points to research from Quocirca that describes MPS as increasingly moving beyond simply managing devices into workplace transformation, automation, digitisation and security.
“That creates a much bigger opportunity for us and our partners,” he says. “We don’t simply want to sell another box. We want to help the channel create recurring, sustainable and profitable customer relationships.”
Guy says this means new and additional services will be added to CTS’ offering. “The definition of managed print is changing,” he notes. “Customers increasingly expect more than hardware, toner and a service agreement. They want simplicity, visibility, security, flexibility and increasingly a solution that fits into their wider technology environment, so our thinking must go beyond simply supplying hardware.
“We will continue developing the proposition around technical support, service, monitoring, training, dealer enablement and the wider lifecycle of the device. We will also continue looking at technologies and partnerships that help our dealers provide a stronger overall managed solution.
“The important thing is that we don’t add services simply to make the proposition look bigger. They must add genuine commercial value for our partners and their customers.”
Standing out
The MPS market is highly competitive, but CTS appreciate that, which is why the company strives to stand out from the crowd.
“For me, it comes down to people, independence, expertise and partnership,” he says. “We understand the trade. CTS is strictly trade-only, so our job is to help our reseller partners succeed rather than compete with them for the end user relationship. The company already provides individual account management, specialist product expertise, end user delivery options and a broad print consumables portfolio.
“Within MPS we then add another layer of specialist knowledge. We have people who understand machines, consumables, service, technical support and the commercial realities of managed print. That experience matters because when a dealer has an opportunity in front of them, they need answers quickly.
“Also CTS still has something incredibly valuable as we grow – personality. Customers can pick up the phone and speak to people who understand their business. We want to retain that personal approach however large the division becomes. We don’t want to become another faceless distributor. We want dealers to see CTS as part of their team.”
Changing market
For Guy, the managed print market is in a period of change, but this presents opportunities. “Traditional print volumes remain under pressure,” he says. “Quocirca’s industry research found that 73% of respondents expected print volumes to decline, by an average of 8.4%. But at the same time it identified opportunities around workflow automation, cloud services, scanning and digitisation. That distinction is important.
“If your definition of the print industry is simply pages printed, then you could look at declining volumes negatively. If your definition is managing documents, devices, information, workflows and services, the opportunity becomes much broader.
“Hybrid working has also changed the conversation. Fleets need to be flexible, secure and appropriate for how organisations operate today.
“For dealers, that creates an opportunity to have a much more strategic conversation with their customers. It’s no longer simply, ‘How many pages do you print?’ it’s ‘How do your people work, what does that cost you, where are the risks and how can we manage it better?’ That’s where modern MPS becomes extremely relevant.”
Customers also increasingly want things to be easier. “They don’t want unnecessary complexity,” says Guy. “They expect transparency, strong commercials, fast support and technology that works.
“Resellers are no different. If we can take complexity away from our dealer partners, we allow them to concentrate on what they are best at – winning customers and developing relationships. That’s why we’re investing in the team, infrastructure and technology behind the proposition.”
Guy says CTS is also listening. “I have spent enough years in this industry to know that you don’t build the best proposition sitting in a boardroom deciding what customers ought to want,” he says. “You build it by talking to dealers, understanding where they are losing opportunities, understanding what frustrates them and then finding ways to solve those problems. That will remain central to how I lead the division.”
Pantum partnership
Another aspect of CTS’ MPS offering is its exclusive UK and Ireland distribution partnership with Pantum.
“Pantum is a massive opportunity for CTS and our reseller partners,” adds Guy. “The proposition extends beyond simply stocking machines: CTS publicly supports the range with genuine consumables and spare parts, nationwide engineer support, dedicated technical support and a Partner Programme. Pantum’s own support site also identifies CTS Wholesale as its UK and Ireland service provider.
“That gives us something we can build around. Our objective is to establish Pantum as a credible, commercially attractive alternative within the UK and Irish dealer channels and give resellers the confidence to take that proposition to their customers. We’re supporting that with stock, technical expertise, demonstrations, training, dealer engagement and commercial programmes.”
Guy adds that CTS will get machines in front of people too. “We want dealers coming into CTS, meeting the team, seeing the technology working, understanding the commercials and discovering how Pantum can fit into their existing MPS proposition,” he says.
“CTS has already started rolling out Pantum’s A4 and A3 printer/MFP range with after-sales and service support across the UK and Ireland.”
Wider growth strategy
The MPS division is an important part of CTS’s wider growth strategy as it complements much of what the company already does.
“CTS has almost 30 years of experience within print consumables and today operates as a strictly trade-only wholesaler,” says Guy. “The business already supports dealers with hardware, consumables, office products and a much wider portfolio.
“MPS gives us another way of helping those dealers grow. My job is to bring the people, proposition and commercial opportunity together, which means developing our existing customers, attracting new MPS specialists, helping traditional dealers enter the managed print market and creating opportunities across the wider CTS dealer community.”
Guy adds that physical investment is important as well. “The expansion of our UK headquarters gives us greater capacity and a stronger environment in which to support customers, demonstrate technology and run dealer events and training.
“Our expansion in Ireland gives us another significant opportunity to take the CTS proposition, our MPS expertise and Pantum into a market where we believe we can make a real impact.
“The ambition isn’t for MPS to operate as an isolated division. It should be integrated into the wider CTS proposition and create opportunities across the Group.”
Future
As mentioned, Guy has ambitious plans for the MPS division. “I want us to look back in 18 months and see a division that has grown significantly, but more importantly, one that has helped our partners grow,” he says.
“I want CTS MPS to be recognised throughout the UK and Ireland as a serious, credible and trusted partner for the dealer community. I also want a much larger network of resellers actively selling MPS with us.”
Guy also wants Pantum to have significantly greater visibility within the channel and for dealers to understand that behind the product sits CTS – stock, people, technical expertise, service and support.
“But most importantly, I want to build it with the team,” he adds. “I’ve spent years in this industry and one thing experience teaches you is that sustainable growth isn’t created by one salesperson or director. It’s created by good people who understand the market and are prepared to work together. We’ve assembled a team of professionals with genuine MPS and print expertise. My role is to give those people the direction, tools and opportunity to succeed.
“CTS is investing. We’re expanding. We have an exclusive UK and Ireland partnership with Pantum. We have an established trade customer base and decades of print-sector experience behind us.
“Now it’s about bringing all those ingredients together and turning that opportunity into growth – for CTS, for Pantum and, above all, for our reseller partners.”
This interview first appeared in Print in the Channel magazine issue #40.

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Ricoh and ETRIA launch “Circular New”

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Sustainability
“Circular New,” a manufacturing concept for resource circulation
Reduces newly sourced material use from about 76% to as low as 21%
Utilises components recovered from the market
Localised production in Japan and Europe

Ricoh Company, Ltd. and ETRIA CO., LTD. have launched “Circular New,” a manufacturing concept that transforms products already used in the market into assets for future production, turning resource circulation into new product value and manufacturing competitiveness.
As the first application, the concept will be introduced to Ricoh’s A3 monochrome multifunction printers (MFPs), with localised production and launch scheduled in Japan and Europe in the first half of 2027. Customers will receive the same latest-generation models, with consistent quality, functionality and warranty, regardless of the production method.
Localised circular production close to consumption markets is designed to reduce the proportion weight for A3 MFPs of newly sourced materials used from approximately 76% to as low as approximately 21%. In addition to conventional centralised production, Ricoh and ETRIA will establish localised circular production in Japan and France to create a regional loop of resource and component reuse. The joint team have suggested that localised production can reduce the product carbon footprint by up to 25%.
This reduction is achieved by lowering the use of newly sourced materials and shortening transportation distances, while establishing a resilient supply framework to ensure reliable product delivery amid geopolitical risks, logistics disruptions and resource price volatility.
With Circular New, Ricoh and ETRIA aim to establish Evolving Circularity, moving beyond reducing environmental impact to continuously channel recovered resources and components into next-generation product value while advancing manufacturing itself.
Katsunori Nakata, executive corporate officer and president of RICOH Digital Products Unit, Ricoh Company, Ltd., and CEO of ETRIA, said,

“Circular New directly challenges the assumption that manufactured products must follow a linear lifecycle. Guided by our principle of aligning ESG with business growth, the Ricoh Group aims to reduce newly sourced material use to 60% by 2030 and 12% by 2050. Through this localized circular production model, we are committed to demonstrating that resource circulation can drive both customer value and manufacturing competitiveness.”

Leading this innovation in Europe, Michael Vavakis, chief transformation, ESG and people officer at Ricoh Europe, said,

“The future belongs to organisations that create more value with fewer wasteful resources. Circular New is a powerful example of how innovation can transform sustainability from an environmental ambition into a source of long-term value. By reducing the use of newly sourced materials from approximately 76% to as low as 21%, while strengthening supply resilience and preserving product quality, we believe circularity can deliver both business growth and reduced environmental impact.”

He continues, “At the heart of this transformation are our people, whose expertise, creativity and commitment are enabling us to reimagine manufacturing for a circular economy. This initiative reflects our commitment to building a manufacturing model fit for the future that supports sustainable growth and strengthens regional resilience.”
 
Related Post: Ricoh Europe awarded Lean & Green 3-Star certification

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What to Consider when Refreshing Hybrid Printer Fleets

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AdviceHybrid working has been an established part of the business landscape for more than six years now. Back then, during COVID, many workers bought printers quickly. Now, those printers are nearing the end of their effective working lives, and businesses are looking to refresh and update them to ensure their hybrid employees can work as efficiently as possible.
It is now more than six and a half years since then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson addressed the nation as the COVID pandemic hit to tell everyone to stay home and save lives. Overnight, many office workers needed equipment, including printers, quickly to be able to do their job effectively at home.
But now, those printers, often bought in haste, are coming to the end of their working lives and many businesses, which retained hybrid working as part of their standard employment contracts, are looking to upgrade them, which presents opportunities for resellers.
Gary Organ, head of device technology sales (office) UK at Fujifilm Business Innovation, notes that in the current climate, most generic office roles continue to follow hybrid working patterns. “Although many claim to recently have seen productivity increase with staff returning to the office,” he adds. “This means that most businesses are factoring in their buying decisions people being away from the office for part of their week.”
Ian Fox, channel solutions and services specialist at Xerox UK & Ireland, says that demand from businesses for refreshing the printers used by hybrid workers is increasing. “Many of the devices purchased during the pandemic were acquired quickly to solve an immediate problem rather than as part of a long-term strategy,” he says.

“Those devices are now reaching the point where reliability, security, supportability and operating costs are becoming concerns. Organisations are increasingly looking to replace these ad hoc purchases with managed, business-grade devices that can be remotely monitored, secured and supported. This aligns with wider industry trends as businesses adapt their print infrastructure to support a permanent hybrid workforce.”

Changing demands
But as businesses look to refresh the printers their hybrid workers use, they have certain demands for them. “Typically businesses are looking for software technology to support hybrid working, integration into existing systems and secure printing that can be collected when in the office,” says Gary.
Ian adds that the key demands from customers are security, simplicity and cloud connectivity. “Organisations want devices that connect seamlessly to cloud-based print and document management platforms, support secure printing without requiring VPN connections, and integrate with the popular cloud service providers,” he says.

“Remote management, automated firmware updates, sustainability reporting and simplified IT support are also becoming increasingly important. Businesses want home and office users to have a consistent experience regardless of where they are working.”

New or refurbished?
With sustainability concerns continuing to ascend the list of priorities for many businesses, this is extending to the tech that they buy – and as a result demand for refurbished and/or remanufactured printer options are increasing.
“While demand remains strongest for new devices there is growing interest in certified refurbished and remanufactured products, particularly among organisations with sustainability targets and budget constraints,” says Ian.

“However, businesses are typically looking for solutions that still provide enterprise-grade security, remote management capabilities and manufacturer-backed support. The decision is increasingly being driven by total cost of ownership and environmental objectives rather than simply acquisition price.”

Gary agrees that sustainability is a factor, with customers also becoming more demanding of new devices. “We are seeing new devices increase with improved energy ratings, lower temperature fusing toner and smaller device footprints as well as improved running cost,” he says.
Reseller conversations
When talking to customers about refreshing hybrid workers’ printers, there are certain aspects that resellers should focus on.

“Software that enables the devices to be used easily and securely when visiting the office, efficiency of devices to ensure that when users are in and printing, they are maximising their time and minimising the time at the device and sustainable technology that uses power when its being use not when users are using the device or less people are in,” says Gary.

Ian says resellers should focus on the broader business outcome rather than just the hardware.

“Security, fleet visibility, remote device management, sustainability benefits, cloud-based print services and reduced support overheads are more compelling than print speed or paper capacity alone,” he says. “Customers should understand the long-term costs and risks associated with unmanaged home-office printing environments.”

Continued growth
With hybrid work now seemingly a fixture in UK working life, it is expected that the number of businesses looking to refresh the printers used by hybrid workers will continue to grow in the next 12-18 months.
“We expect continued growth in refresh activity,” says Ian.

“Hybrid working has stabilised rather than disappeared, and organisations are moving from temporary solutions to strategic investments. As security requirements, sustainability goals and cloud adoption continue to increase, businesses will look to standardise and modernise the devices supporting their hybrid workforce. The result will be greater demand for managed, connected and secure print solutions that can be supported consistently across office and home environments.”

Gary agrees that hybrid working has stabilised, adding that, if anything, days in the office are increasing. “But with a landscape such as this that means one size does not fit all so a portfolio and range that can meet all the clients’ needs no matter what approach they take is essential,” he adds. “Also a range like that of the Fujifilm Apeos range that integrates with all the key market leading software too such as Papercut, MYQ and Ysoft.”
This article first appeared in Print in the Channel magazine issue #40.

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People Moves in the Channel Round Up

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People Moves(Pictured Above): Top L to R: Chelsea Brassington, Robbie Ellis, Paul Cook
Bottom L to R: Paul Brady, Nick Tate, James Yates, Kristin Hanley
Chelsea Brassington
has joined Jigsaw24 in the position of Commercial Contracts Coordinator.
Robbie Ellis
has been appointed Business Development Manager at Origin Storage Ltd.
Paul Cook
has taken on the position of Senior Account Manager at Shoothill.
Paul Brady
has joined Custom Technology Solutions as Business Development Manager.
Nick Tate
is now an Account Executive at Dell Technologies.
James Yates
has started a new position as Cloud & Cyber Sales Director at Ingram Micro.
Kristin Hanley
recently joined Eaton as VP Commercial Excellence & Marketing for EMEA.
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(Pictured Below): Top L to R: Philipp Hartmann, Val Walsh, Louis Rogulja-Hodge
Bottom L to R: Lewis Kelly, Cheryl van Scheppingen-Heineman, Edward Reisner-Watkins, Jordan Rowland
Philipp Hartmann
has been appointed Global Sr. Director Marketing & Category Management for CHERRY.
Val Walsh
is now President, Europe for QTS Data Centers.
Louis Rogulja-Hodge
has joined Cameo in the position of Account Manager.
Lewis Kelly
is now an Account Manager at Euro Options.
Cheryl van Scheppingen-Heineman
has stepped into the role of Director Field Marketing EMEA at EPAM Systems.
Edward Reisner-Watkins
recently stepped into the role of Head of Marketing at Jigsaw24.
Jordan Rowland
has started a new role as Hybrid Client Manager at Lenovo.
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Brother Launches SafetyLabelPro for Workplace Labelling

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Print Channel NewsBrother has launched a new opportunity for partners in workplace safety labelling with SafetyLabelPro, which is designed to help customers create safety signs and labels on site, rather than having to rely on external suppliers.
Health and safety incidents at work cost businesses billions every year in lost productivity, payouts and hiring people to cover staff absence.
Often, something as simple as signage or clear labelling can help to stop accidents or incidents occurring, whether they are within the office, warehouse, industrial environments or any other of the myriad types of workplace that exist in the UK across many sectors.
With businesses obviously keen to minimise any incidents in the workplace, it provides opportunities for resellers to provide solutions to enable businesses to create their own safety labelling in house.
To this end, Brother UK has launched a new workplace safety labelling solution, giving partners a new opportunity to help customers create compliant safety signs and labels on demand.
The solution enables organisations to produce safety signage, hazardous chemical labels, pipe markers, rack labels and equipment identification on site, without relying on pre-printed stock or external suppliers.
Combining Brother’s thermal transfer printers, SafetyLabelPro software and a range of specialist vinyl consumables, available in a range of sizes, colours and layouts, the solution provides everything customers need to create durable, compliant safety labels on site. For partners, it brings hardware, software and specialist consumables together in a single offering, making it easier than ever to help customers improve workplace health and safety.
The solution is now being introduced to the UK market, following successful deployments in France and Spain. The rollout forms part of Brother’s wider strategy to expand its specialist labelling offering and support customers with industry-specific applications beyond traditional Auto ID environments, the company says.
Thousands of options
SafetyLabelPro provides access to more than 4,500 editable templates, including internationally recognised safety pictograms and CLP/GHS warning statements. Combined with specialist media such as die-cut hazard labels, fluorescent and phosphorescent labels and warehouse rack labels, the solution offers the flexibility to support a wide range of workplace health and safety applications.
Resellers can also access a trial version of SafetyLabelPro to demonstrate the software to customers, while no minimum order quantities on label supplies make it easier to support projects of all sizes.
Labels are designed for long-term use in industrial environments and are resistant to chemicals, abrasion and temperature fluctuations.
Access to flexible solutions
Brother’s solution is designed for workplace health and safety applications across the board, but is also to be simple for partners to use.
“This launch expands our specialist labelling offering and gives partners access to a flexible solution that supports a wide range of workplace health and safety applications,” says Greig Millar, chief revenue officer at Brother UK. “Whether a customer needs warehouse rack labels, pipe markers or safety signage, they have access to the templates, media and support needed to deliver the right solution.

“It’s another example of how we’re making it as straightforward as possible for partners to meet customer needs. By bringing together trusted Brother hardware, intuitive software and specialist consumables in a single offering, we’re helping partners strengthen customer relationships while opening up opportunities in a growing specialist labelling market.”

The Brother safety signage and labelling solution will be available to resellers through Bluestar distribution. Any resellers interested in offering this solution should contact Bluestar or their Brother account manager. Resellers can also access a campaign toolkit through BrotherZone.

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Kyocera unveils Printing Parts Innovation for Q4 2026

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Print Channel NewsKyocera Corporation has launched its new KMH Series thermal printhead (pictured above) for mobile barcode label printers in logistics, retail, healthcare, and related sectors.
Designed for refrigerated and frozen environments, the KMH Series thermal printhead for barcode labels (model number KMH-72-8PBS1-PFS) features enhanced pulse durability and high reliability. Mass production is scheduled for October 2026. The new thermal printhead delivers high reliability and a compact form factor, using Kyocera’s proprietary design technology to ensure stable print quality even under demanding printing conditions.
Kyocera developed this product to address evolving design requirements for mobile printers. Refrigerated and frozen environments require higher printing energy for adequate print density, which increases the load on the printhead. The KMH series maintains stable print quality under these high-energy conditions due to its enhanced pulse durability. This capability ensures stable printer operation in applications requiring reliable label information, such as food logistics and operations within refrigerated and frozen warehouses.
Its compact design enables efficient use of limited space inside mobile printers, as its smaller footprint supports the development of lighter, more compact printer designs while providing greater flexibility in the placement of internal components, such as batteries, and in enclosure design.
New circulating inkjet printhead for label and packaging printing (KJ4A-EX600RC-HX)
Plans to begin sales in November 2026 of a new circulating inkjet printhead (pictured below) for label and packaging printing have also been announced. The printhead supports white ink, varnish ink, and foil decoration, such as gold or silver, onto printed surfaces to create premium decorative effects.
By accommodating a wider range of ink viscosities and enabling high-speed printing, the new printhead addresses the increasing demand for diverse decorative effects in the label and packaging market. It supports UV inks, at a supported viscosity range of 8-11 millipascals per second. Kyocera’s proprietary structure circulates ink near the nozzles to enable stable printing.
The drive frequency, which controls ink droplet ejection timing, has doubled from 20 kHz in the previous KJ4A-AL model to 40 kHz. This higher frequency enables printing speeds up to 100 meters per minute, delivering one of the highest productivity levels among Kyocera’s UV ink-compatible printheads.
With the KJ4A-EX600RC-HX, Kyocera aims to meet the printing industry’s evolving needs and support the ongoing advancement of digital printing.

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MPS Monitor introduces ChatMPS

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New ProductsMonitoring has become the baseline. The harder question is which data matters today, and what action it calls for. Mark Kouwenberg, director of sales at MPS Monitor, discusses “Is printer monitoring dead?” below.
No, printer monitoring is not going anywhere, and I would not want to be the one telling our almost 5,000 dealers otherwise. Meter reads still must be accurate, toner still has to arrive before a device runs dry, and a machine has to be visible before anybody can service it. What has changed is where monitoring sits. Five years ago, collecting reliable data across a mixed fleet was a competitive advantage. Today it is the entry ticket, and we know that dealers’ problem is not a shortage of data, but direction.
Next generation of printer fleet management
MPS Monitor built its Monitor → Manage strategy around one goal: making your (Managed) Print Services contracts more profitable.
Monitoring tells you what happened. Managing decides what happens next. The next generation of device management isn’t about collecting more data; it’s about surfacing the exceptions and decisions that move your bottom line.
Between the two sit four things: understanding what the data means across hundreds, thousands or tens of thousands of devices, prioritising what matters today, this week or this month, automating what should never need a person, and putting the answer where the question is asked. That last step is the one our industry has left alone. Reporting assumes that whoever needs an answer knows which file or dashboard to open, and in most dealer businesses that person does not.
MPS Monitor introduces: ChatMPS
ChatMPS is one of the first launches within our Monitor → Manage strategy, and it takes the last step in the above four points: putting the answer where the question is asked. It is the conversational engine of MPS Monitor: you ask it a question about your fleet in your own words, and it answers on your own devices, customers, contracts and even support tickets. Every individual, from top management to sales staff and service engineers gets value from ChatMPS in their daily business.
Why this is not the chatbot you have already seen
Most platforms in this market now have something conversational in them, and most are documentation helpers. They explain features and interpret screens. ChatMPS reads your live data, and the difference is architectural.
A general assistant produces text from what it was trained on, so it has no idea what is happening in your account today. ChatMPS turns your question into a governed query, runs it against your own devices, customers and contracts, and then explains the result. It never writes the query itself, which is what stops it returning a confident wrong number. Where a figure is unavailable it says so, and where an answer rests on a partial sample it tells you. It also knows the vocabulary: managed against unmanaged devices, blended against detailed counters, cost per page. Those distinctions separate a useful answer from a plausible one.
What dealers ask it
The questions from the field are rarely what we expected. A sales executive, the evening before a visit: I am at customer ABC tomorrow, what should I expect? A consumables team: which toners do I need for customer ABC over the next seven days, and provide me with the right SKUs, device IDs and the location details?
None of those used to be a question. They were requests that became spreadsheets, and the spreadsheet arrived after days. ChatMPS also builds the deliverable: an Excel workbook with fleet status and device details, a PowerPoint presentation with QBR and extensive strategic advice on how to improve the customer’s fleet – all this produced in seconds by asking ChatMPS a very simple, one line prompt like ‘For customer X, give me a full fleet status in Excel, and create a presentation with quarterly analysis and fleet improvement suggestions’.
Why the answers hold up
Those deliverables often go straight to a customer, which is why each answer carries its source, scope and the time the data was read. Access follows the permissions the platform already enforces, so nobody sees a fleet they are not entitled to see, and managed and unmanaged populations never merge. ChatMPS inherits the MPS Monitor security posture: ISO/IEC 27001, SOC 2 Type 2, CSA STAR Level 2 and GDPR compliance. For now, it answers and explains rather than acting on your behalf, and that is deliberate. We believe the right to act should be earned, not assumed, especially when it comes to AI platforms.
So, is printer monitoring dead?
No. It has become the floor rather than the ceiling. MPS Monitor has a clear Monitor → Manage strategy, and ChatMPS is one of the deliverables inside it, with more to follow. We monitor more than 3 million devices and process more than 55 billion pages a year and that volume keeps growing. What has ended is monitoring as a destination. The next decade of managed print services belongs to the dealers who know what to do with what they see, and ChatMPS is how we are putting that conviction into a product. 
ChatMPS is currently in early access with a selected group of dealers.
 
This article first appeared in Print in the Channel magazine issue #40.

The post MPS Monitor introduces ChatMPS first appeared on Print in the Channel.

 

KYOCERA Documents Solutions UK receives a Special Visitor

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Company NewsToday Kyocera Document Solutions UK welcomed an important visitor from KYOCERA Head Office in Japan: Munenaga-san from Kyocera Corporation, Executive Officer / Senior General Manager of Corporate Accounting and Finance Group and Kyocera Document Solutions, Director (pictured centre)
The team were grateful to him for taking time out of his busy schedule to visit the full team and meet all departments on a tour of the UK headquarters in Reading.The post KYOCERA Documents Solutions UK receives a Special Visitor first appeared on Print in the Channel.